Carroll earns Forsythe test.

Forsythe Championship Racing has confirmed that Adam Carroll will be of three drivers to take part in a testing session with the Champ Car World Series frontrunners at MSR Houston later this month.

GP2 ace Carroll, who acted as a reserve driver for RuSPORT in the final meeting of the 2006 season in Mexico City when it was unclear whether or not Justin Wilson would be able to race, will be joined at the two-day test by Indy Pro Series champion Jay Howard and the newly-crowned Champ Car Atlantic title winner Simon Pagenaud.

"I feel great about having the opportunity to test with a team like Forsythe," Carroll said. "I've been working really hard on my physical training lately so I can be in top shape and give it everything I've got. Next week, I'll travel to Indianapolis to visit the team at their shop and it will be a good opportunity for everybody to get to know each other and spend some time together before we get out on the track.

"Champ Cars are a lot of fun to drive, it's a good driver's car and you really have to hustle it around. This year, I've gotten to know the Champ Car World Series up close and it is definitely the championship where I want to be next year."

Pagenaud comes into the test having beaten a highly-competitive field to the Atlantic title, and the $2million winners purse that went with it. The Frenchman, who took one win and six podiums en route to the crown, is eager to make the step up to Champ Car for the new season and said he was delighted to be given the chance to test for the Forsythe squad.

"I'm honoured that the Forsythe team has decided to give me this opportunity," he said. "I know many of the members of the team and I am very aware of how hard they work. I want to be able to show them that I can do the job well and that I can give them good feedback so we can have a successful test.

"MSR Houston is a very physical track, but I know I'm fit enough to drive the car so I'm not worried about that. More than anything, I'm just going to have to get used to the speed and to the brakes of a Champ Car. It's great to be able to get some testing in before the Christmas break, but I'm just going to do my best and we'll see what happens."

Howard, meanwhile, took the IPS title in the closest finish in series history, clinching the crown by just four points. Like both Carroll and Pagenaud, the Briton said he was thrilled at being given the chance to take part in the session, adding that he was particularly honoured to have been asked considering the many drivers that Forsythe could have put in the car.

"For me, this is a great opportunity," he admitted. "I mean, as far as I see it, the Forsythe team could get anybody they want, whenever they want, to test their car and they chose me. I think that speaks volumes of what they think of me and it reflects on what I've done over the years and I'm very happy about that.

"I know I'll do as good a job as I do with everybody else and I'll be the fastest guy on the track. I've never driven a car like this before, so I'll have to figure out the bits and pieces and where the limit of the car is. But I'm fitter and stronger than I've ever been - basically I've been preparing for this call for the last six months, so I know I'll be good."